Ministry of Defence

Although the SAF was established in 1965 and Singapore only gained her current version of a National Service-based armed forces in 1967, the history of her defence started long before that. Under colonial rule that started in 1819, Singapore relied on British forces to protect her from all threats. A turning point occurred in 1854 with the creation of the Singapore Volunteer Rifle Corps (SVRC), a volunteer organisation to maintain internal security.
In 1888, the SVRC became the Singapore Volunteer Artillery (SVA), and its success prompted formation of other volunteer corps. In 1901, these were all consolidated into the Singapore Volunteer Corps (SVC). In 1922, the SVC was renamed the Straits Settlements Volunteer Force (SSVF) to include volunteer forces from Malacca and Penang.